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1Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors2Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute3Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsA 2025 Scroll.in excerpt from Sajjan Yadav’s book Scaling Mount UPSC: Inspiring Stories of Young IAS Officers describes how Satyam Gandhi prepared for CSE Prelims-2020 while completing his undergraduate studies. It recounts his planning, revision, selective use of coaching and efforts to manage distractions—but it is a reported personal account, not evidence that any one routine guarantees success.
What the book excerpt says about Gandhi’s preparation
Scroll.in published the excerpt on February 25, 2025, crediting it to Sajjan Yadav and identifying the book as a Penguin India title. The excerpt says Gandhi began serious preparation in April 2019 for CSE Prelims-2020. Its account describes his approach and circumstances; it does not independently verify his biography, exam result or the role his methods played in that result.
Planning and managing study time
According to the excerpt, Gandhi set daily and weekly targets, reviewed how he spent his time and used Sundays to catch up on goals he had missed during the week. He also studied during reading and commute time. These details describe the routine attributed to him, rather than a tested formula for other candidates.
Using coaching selectively
The excerpt says Gandhi moved to a small room near coaching in Karol Bagh, partly to avoid the time spent travelling from Lajpat Nagar. It describes him attending coaching sessions selectively when he considered them useful for difficult topics, and studying upcoming material in advance. The account presents coaching as one part of his preparation, not as a requirement or a substitute for independent study.
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Revision, weak areas and mock tests
The account emphasizes repeated revision, attention to weaker areas and an integrated approach to Prelims and Mains preparation. It says Gandhi used mock tests after building a knowledge base. That sequence is his reported approach; the excerpt does not compare it with other candidates’ strategies or establish an optimal time to begin testing.
What he studied and how he organized notes
For current affairs, the excerpt says Gandhi read The Hindu and The Indian Express, first more broadly and later more selectively. It also mentions Vajiram’s Yellow Book and Vision IAS Value Added Material as supplementary resources for Mains. These are contextual details in one account, not evidence that the named publications are necessary or best for other candidates.
For organization, the excerpt says Gandhi copied the syllabus onto A-4 sheets and switched from bound registers to loose A-4 pages so he could arrange notes more flexibly. It also says he deactivated social media accounts to reduce distraction. The excerpt does not establish that candidates need to use the same materials, note format or restrictions.
The financial and living circumstances in the account
The excerpt describes financial strain in Gandhi’s family and reports details about his budget and housing costs after he moved closer to coaching. Those are personal details as presented in the book excerpt, not representative figures for UPSC candidates or a basis for estimating what preparation generally costs. The account’s emphasis on his move is practical: it reduced the commuting time he said had been taking away from study.
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What readers can—and cannot—conclude
The excerpt offers a picture of one candidate’s reported preparation: planned targets, regular review, repeated revision, selective coaching and focused attention to weak areas. It does not establish that these habits caused a first-attempt success, that they will work for every candidate or that the listed newspapers and study materials are indispensable. Readers should treat the details as an individual account rather than a general UPSC guide.
The source is Scroll.in’s February 25, 2025 article, “A new book recounts how 21-year-old Satyam Gandhi cleared the UPSC examinations on the first try”, an excerpt credited to Sajjan Yadav’s Scaling Mount UPSC: Inspiring Stories of Young IAS Officers, published by Penguin India.
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